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At Zyvex, we are taking the first steps on the journey into
the small world of nanotechnology by developing manufacturing
architectures that should let us make huge numbers of miniature
robotic arms, all working together to assemble miniature parts.
One approach we are pursuing is called exponential assembly.
Exponential assembly is a manufacturing
architecture starting with a single tiny robotic arm on a
surface. This first robotic arm makes a second robotic arm
on a facing surface by picking up miniature parts — carefully
laid out in advance in exactly the right locations so the
tiny robotic arm can find them — and assembling them.
The two robotic arms then make two more robotic arms, one
on each of the two facing surfaces. These four robotic arms,
two on each surface, then make four more robotic arms. This
process continues with the number of robotic arms steadily
increasing in the pattern 1, 2, 4, 8, 16, 32, 64, etc. until
some manufacturing limit is reached (both surfaces are completely
covered with tiny robotic arms, for example). This is an exponential
growth rate, hence the name exponential assembly.
To keep things simple, we want
to keep the robotic arms simple. While a general purpose robotic
arm having six degrees of free movement (much as your arms
and hands have) would be able to pick up parts and position
them in any orientation and position desired, such a general
purpose arm is harder to make. Zyvex is considering a simpler
design using robotic arms having only two rotational degrees
of freedom and a gripper (see illustration). Externally provided
power and computer control would make all the robotic arms
on a surface operate synchronously and in parallel.
While each robotic arm would have
only two degrees of freedom, the surface itself could be moved
in X, Y and Z. This provides a total of five degrees of freedom
for each robotic arm, with the three translational degrees
of freedom being shared across all the robotic arms on a surface.
Exponential assembly can be implemented
on many different length scales. Given existing manufacturing
capabilities, it should be possible to implement exponential
assembly using MEMS (Micro Electro Mechanical Systems) technology
with device sizes measuring tens or hundreds of microns and
feature sizes of about one micron. Each rotational degree
of freedom could be implemented using a planar rotating stage
produced using standard lithographic techniques (see illustration).
Two such rotating stages can be attached at right angles,
providing the desired two degrees of rotational freedom for
this assembly station. A gripper attached to one rotating
stage completes the basic design.
Assembly of the first robotic
arm could be done manually using Zyvex’s MEMbler™.
Click on the illustration at the left to see a video of this
process (the picture at the left is one of the first few frames
from the video).
Having assembled the first robotic
arm, it could then assemble further robotic arms in exponentially
increasing numbers. Click on the illustration at the right
to see a video of the exponential increase in robotic arms
(the picture at the right is one of the first few frames from
the video). This video illustrates the proposed geometry of
a simple two-degree-of-freedom robotic arm being used to assemble
a similar robotic arm.
For a more in-depth discussion
of exponential assembly, see Dr. George Skidmore's paper,
“Exponential Assembly”
as submitted to the special Foresight Conference Issue of
“Nanotechnology.”
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2006. Zyvex Corporation. All Rights Reserved. |
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